Her Name Was Annie by Beth Rinyu (the little red hen read aloud txt) 📕

My eyes widened as Colleen’s words played out in my mind. Somehow I don’t think he was working unless that voluptuous blonde sitting across from him was a coworker. Turns out Colleen was wrong. Jack was working on a case that day, and stupid me allowed myself to believe otherwise.

“The place was loaded with undercover agents; in case it was a setup.”

“Were you there?” I asked.

“Yeah.”

“This woman…was she a blonde?” I didn’t know why I was asking when I already knew the answer. More than likely just to torture myself a little more over how unfairly I had treated Jack because of it. When all the while he was just trying to avenge a horrible act that had affected both of us so greatly.

Ian nodded and my heart sank a little more. “Did you know her?” he asked.

“No, just…forget I even asked.” I shook my head and continued. “So, was it a setup?”

“I don’t think so. When she gave us the tip, she was really pissed at Guy. Apparently, they had just broken up. We wanted to make sure she was credible, so we watched her for weeks until this bust went down, and she didn’t have any contact with him. Everything was perfectly in place for the bust this morning. Agent McGuire insisted he take the lead on it. He was adamant that he was the one who took him down.”

I closed my eyes and sighed heavily. Why didn’t he allow another agent to at least assist him? Maybe if he had, he wouldn’t be in that operating room, fighting for his life. I hated that he always had to be so stubborn and proud, now more so than ever. “Where was he shot?” I asked, not wanting to know the answer.

“The bullet pierced his vest and got in his chest. Then another one got him in the shoulder.”

“Oh my God.” I covered my face with my hands just as Kara lifted her head.

“Mom.” The smile she was trying to form quickly turned into sobs. I got up from where I was sitting and sat down in the chair beside her, wrapping her in a hug.

“It’s going to be okay.” I pressed my lips on the top of her head, trying to console her as well as myself.

“Stephanie, Kara.” I lifted my head to find Jack’s sister, Lori, and her husband, Glenn. I immediately stood up and acknowledged them both with a hug.

“I’m so sorry, we got here as fast as we could when Kara called.” Lori and her husband lived about a six-hour drive away in Virginia. When Lori shifted her gaze to Kara, her face immediately shrouded in despair. “Oh, Kara, honey!” she exclaimed, taking the seat next to her that I had just occupied and throwing her arms around her.

“When they come out to give an update, just tell them you’re his wife,” Glenn whispered.

“But—”

“Trust me, Stephanie, it’ll be easier with getting any information all around,” Glenn countered. I didn’t put up a protest, he was a doctor himself, so I figured he knew what he was talking about when it came to that stuff. Not to mention, it would more than likely be Kara who they’d be giving direct information to since she was his next of kin and over the age of eighteen. I didn’t want to place that burden on her if there was bad news to be had. It would be better off given to me first, so I could deliver it to her, not that I’d handle it much better. “Have there been any updates?” Glenn asked.

“No. I don’t know if that’s good or bad.”

He placed his hand on my shoulder. “He’s in the best place he can be right now. You just have to let them do their work and have faith.” Glenn and I joined the others in the seating area and I introduced him to Ian, who had already started up a conversation with Lori. Kara popped out of her seat, and I turned around to see what had gotten her attention. Dread and hope overtook me as I watched a tall African American man in scrubs approaching us.

“Are you the family of Jack McGuire?” he asked.

“Yes.” Kara’s voice was hoarse from all her crying.

“I’m Dr. Brayden. The surgery went well.” That was all I needed to hear. I was finally able to release that painful breath I’d been holding in for the past few hours. “We were able to remove both bullets. He’s going to be in ICU for a few days before he can go to the stepdown unit. We want to monitor him closely and make sure he doesn’t develop any infection. He’s going to have a long road ahead of him for recovery. Physical therapy for his shoulder and a lot of care when he is able to come home. But let’s just take one step at a time for now.” Kara and I both nodded in unison.

“Thank you so much, Doctor,” I said.

“When will we be able to see him?” Kara asked.

“Well, he’s being brought up to the unit now. I’m assuming you’re his wife and daughter?”

“Yes,” I said without hesitation.

“I’d say give it a couple of hours. You can check with the nurse in the unit to see when he’ll be allowed visitors. He’ll still be heavily sedated. Only one person at a time and very short intervals. Too many visitors for extended periods of time are not good at this phase.”

“Thanks so much,” I replied. After the doctor walked away, Kara and I filled the others in on the update.

“Thank God!” Lori exclaimed. I noticed Glenn didn’t share in that same excitement. He smiled, but it was a cautious one, leading me to believe that maybe his medical expertise knew that Jack wasn’t completely out of the woods yet. I didn’t want to think that way, it didn’t do any good. We had to remain positive.

“Kara, why don’t you try and